Over the years, a wide variety of mail collecting devices, or mailboxes, have been invented and many of them found their way to the open market. Perhaps the most popular mail collecting device, currently utilized by the U.S. residential mail recipients, is the tunnel-shaped mailbox. Which according to the historians did not become mandatory in the U.S. until early 1920s.
However, majority of U.S. businesses utilize commercial-style mailboxes, which could be divided into three categories: 1) multiple door mailbox units, similar to a traditional postal boxes located within a post office, which are typically mounted indoors or positioned outside on a pedestal; 2) wall mounted mailboxes, servicing primarily individual businesses; 3) and mail slot units, also known as mail chutes, which are most commonly mounted to the front door of a business, and in some instances to a garage door.
The present invention focuses on the latter one of the commercial-styled mailboxes, the mail slot units. The mail slot units are typically mounted to the entry or garage door of a business, and in some instances to an easily accessible wall. As the name impels, the installation of said mailbox requires creation of a narrow slot, or a cut-out, through which the mail can be pushed though. Unfortunately, most of the commercially available slot type mailboxes, provide only decorative cut-out enclosures, with rudimentary systems for opening and closing the access to the mail slot. Very few of these systems incorporate means for stopping the delivered mail from hitting the floor and scattering around the room.
The present invention addresses the above-listed shortcomings by providing a new device for both collecting and holding the delivered mail. Specifically, the present invention is an adjustable indoor mailbox, mountable to a wall, window or a door, designed to capture the delivered mail and to make the retrieval of the mail easily accessible to the recipient of the delivered mail.
The present invention comprises of two primary components, the container and the adjustment part. Wherein the adjustment part's primary function is to close any gaps through which the mail may fall through, and the container part's primary function is to store the delivered mail. Said primary components could be manufactured from a wide variety of materials, including but not limited to wood, plastic, and/or steel.
Examples of prior-art, addressing various incarnations of mailboxes designed to capture the mail delivered through a cut-out in a door, may be found in the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 432,254; 449,593; 473,138; 476,139; 756,559; 782,229; 1,640,153; 1,797,961; 2,128,689; 2,229,646; 2,829,820; 3,802,620; 4,069,965; 4,776,512; 4,826,075; 5,029,753; 5,368,226; 5,492,272; 5,897,053; 6,945,451; 6,959,858; 7,182,243; 7,240,823; Ser. No. 11,805,393; 20090184159; 20020070269; 2011005242.
In fact, the U.S. Patent Applications No. 20020070269 (by Richard and Karen Rosiello); No. 20090184159 and No. 2011005242 (both by Camie A. Crawford); and the following U.S. Pat. No. 449,593 (granted to William Scott); No. 782,229 (granted to Marcellus S. Field); U.S. Pat. No. 1,640,153 (granted to Ole O. Kolstad); U.S. Pat. No. 1,797,961 (granted to George McBride); U.S. Pat. No. 2,128,689 (granted to Joseph Bingham Francis); U.S. Pat. No. 2,829,820 (granted to Algert F. Evers); U.S. Pat. No. 3,802,620 (granted to Ferrara); U.S. Pat. No. 4,069,965 (granted to Herman H. Maddox, Jr.); U.S. Pat. No. 4,776,512 (granted to Lee P. Moore, Sr., Mary A. Moore); U.S. Pat. No. 5,368,226 (granted to Luisa M. Franceschino); U.S. Pat. No. 5,492,272 (granted to Brian R. Fewer); U.S. Pat. No. 7,182,243 (granted to Thomas W. Plappert), and the U.S. Pat. No. 7,240,823 (granted to Jafar Saidiazar), all implement in their designs a mail catching receptacle made out of a flexible material—which is the key differentiating feature between the present invention and the above-listed prior art.
More specifically, the mail catching receptacles of said prior art incorporate in their designs plastic bags and pouches made of cloth. However, the mail catching receptacle of the present invention is made of a structurally firm material, such as stainless steel, forming a rectangular shape, designed to adjust its width to accommodate uneven mounting surfaces.
U.S. Pat. No. 432,254 (granted to William Taylor), discloses a device using a hinged mechanism for opening the mailbox attached to the door, without any visible means of collecting the delivered mail and/or preventing it from falling out. This patent differs significantly from the present invention as its design does not incorporate an interior mailbox assembly, comprising of the container and adjustment part, mountable to a wall, window or a door; made to adjust its width to accommodate uneven mounting surface, to capture and hold the delivered mail, preventing it from falling on to the floor.
U.S. Pat. No. 473,138 (granted to Peter Anderson), and the U.S. Pat. No. 476,139 (granted to Jack A. Favv), both disclose a mail receptacle, designed to swivel in and out of the door's large opening, allowing for collection of the mail in an elongated container. These patents differ significantly from the present invention, as they do not incorporate an interior mailbox assembly, comprising of the container and adjustment part, mountable to a wall, window or a door; made to adjust its width to accommodate uneven mounting surface and to capture the delivered mail.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,756,559 (granted to Edward J Knapp), the U.S. Pat. No. 1,805,393 (granted to Lizzie Fanchier Zada), and the U.S. Pat. No. 4,826,075 (granted to Donald S. Burns), disclose a door mailbox, incorporating an interior mail collector, in a shape of a box or a basket, for collection of the delivered mail. Unlike the present invention's mailbox assembly, the interior box of the prior art does not provide for adjustment of its width, making it impossible to function with uneven surfaces, such as a glass door with a much thicker door frame, which might be utilized for mounting of the mailbox assembly.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,229,646 (granted to Michael Firestone), discloses a receptacle, incorporating an elaborate hinging mechanism, designed to automatically expand as its contents increase in volume. This patent differs significantly from the present invention as its design does not incorporate an interior mailbox assembly, comprising of the container and adjustment part, mountable to a wall, window or a door; made to adjust its width to accommodate uneven mounting surface, to capture and hold the delivered mail, preventing it from falling on to the floor.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,029,753 (granted to Francisco Hipon, Lau S. Wing), and the U.S. Pat. No. 5,897,053 (granted to Ronald Cirimele), disclose a mailbox designed to catch the mail delivered through a mail slot, incorporated in a garage door. This patent differs significantly from the present invention as its design is specifically designed to function with garage doors, and does not incorporate an interior mailbox assembly, comprising of the container and adjustment part, mountable to a wall, window or a front door; made to adjust its width to accommodate uneven mounting surface, and to capture and hold the delivered mail.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,945,451 (granted to Earl Bridges), discloses a mail receptacle, comprising of two separate components, the first mounted to the exterior and to second mounted to an interior of a door, incorporating locking mechanism and two swiveling flaps, designed to restrict accessibility to the delivered mail. These patents differ significantly from the present invention, as they do not incorporate an interior mailbox assembly, comprising of the container and adjustment part, mountable to a wall, window or a door; made to adjust its width to accommodate uneven mounting surface and to capture the delivered mail.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,959,858 (granted to Brent Joseph Stagnaro), discloses a mail receptacle device, designed to attach beneath a mail slot created in a door, and to utilize the contact, the delivered mail makes with the face-plate of said device, to trigger, the accordion-like, automatically enlarging mail container. These patents differ significantly from the present invention, as they do not incorporate an interior mailbox assembly, comprising of the container and adjustment part, mountable to a wall, window or a door; made to adjust its width to accommodate uneven mounting surface and to capture the delivered mail.